Okay, I cooked both meals this past weekend and here is how they turned on. Friday we ate the Caribbean Chicken. I sprinkled salt, red pepper, and garlic powder prior to baking. The baking was a bit tricky because it wasn’t completely thawed, but the instructions said that would be okay…just add 10 more minutes. Although it should have only taken 25 minutes, it took a good 45 to ensure everything was cooked.

I know my picture isn’t that good…I’m in desperate need for a new camera.  Anyhoo, the flavor was very good, but I think I would prefer it with white rice cooked separately.  Since the whole thing was baked, the texture was very mushy, almost like a thick oatmeal.  But the flavor was ON!  I think the same ingredients would work well with a white fish as well or shrimp.  I also think it would be good to make the broth separate in a saucepan and pour it over when everything is cooked.  

On Sunday we ate the pecan chicken.  It was very quick to prep prior to baking in the oven.  The flavor was really good as well.  The premade pesto was really salty and I unfortunately added a decent dollop of it on my chicken.  My kids didn’t like the pecans.  It was very interesting as the pecans added a sweetness reminiscent of a dessert.  The chicken was very tender with both meals.

I roasted yellow peppers (no…those aren’t peaches!) and corn for my veggie fix!

All in all, I think the dinners were successful.  They were a bit filling and almost had the flavor of a boxed meal despite the fact that the ingredients were all fresh.  Maybe a side effect of being frozen?  I think these prepared meal shops are a great way to give a nourishing meal once in a while, but not every night.  The best thing about it is that it has given me more recipe ideas and made me think of some things I should keep in my pantry to create dinner.  Here’s my final assessment:

Out of 5 pts…

Flavor:  4.5

Appearance:  4

Texture:  3

Convenience:  5

Overall family reaction:  4.75

Let me know how your meals turn out!